Our skydiving Grandma

Jeff's mom has always wanted to go skydiving. For Mother's Day we all chipped in and paid for her to go.

The kids watched in amazement as their grandma prepared and then jumped out of an airplane. They thought she was crazy.

All the grandkids ran to meet her when she landed. They were glad to see she was still alive.

We sure love our grandma!

Our adoption Friends

I love all the awesome people we have met on our adoption journey. This is our great friend Wendy and her family. She was in the play Peter Pan with her kids and we had so much fun watching them. I even got Jeff to go.

They took our kids back stage and showed them all the props. The girls had the best time and talked about it for days. That is Alex on the right who was in the same orphanage as the girls. Isn't he cute?

Lagoon with the Kellers

The boys started a water fight and were picking on the girls, but the girls got them back. Don't mess with four Ukranian girls.

Lena and Tanya

Ethan, Victor and Parker

Chandler's Birthday

The kids wanted Lagoon passes this year and so they all worked together and earned the money they needed. It was cute to watch Lena showing her brothers how to make bread and watch them output loaf after loaf and sale them to the neighbors. It took them a month of hard work, but much to my surprise they all managed to earn enough money.

We celebrated Chandler's 12th Birthday at Lagoon. This is the cake the girls made for him.

Jeff's mom is awesome and loves to go on all of the scariest rides. Lena wanted to go on the Sky Coaster and Grandma was only too willing to join her. Jeff and I were not surprised about his mom, but we couldn't believe Lena wanted to do it. She loved it! She melts down in tears at the Dentist and won't open her mouth but then has no qualms about doing this.

Memorial Day

Our Memorial Day picnic with Jeff's Family.

Chandler desperately trying to finish his book before school on Tuesday.

Sara making a flower wreath out of dandelions.

The cousins were all very impressed with her skills.

Lena wondered why I was taking her picture. I told her, "Honey not very many American kids would be sweeping the picnic area with a broom they made from branches. I don't want you ever to forget that cute Ukrainian girl in you." She laughed and posed for me.

Parker and Lena helping their little cousins build a waterfall.

The Garden

The girls asked me a few months ago for a garden. I told them we would, but they had to help. I thought they would be excited for a few days and then leave all the work for me. I was wrong. They moved the sod, helped me build garden boxes, hauled three truck loads of dirt and one truck load of gravel all without a word of complaint.

They both wanted their own box and insisted on doing the work themselves. I showed them U-tube videos on building garden boxes and we went to work. They sawed the wood for their boxes and drilled all the holes. I was very impressed. At the nursery, they insisted on buying their own plants and seeds, I tried to pay for it but they wouldn't let me. I am constantly surprised and amazed by these two girls. We had the best time building our garden. When they would get tired of working and needed a rest they would ask me to read to them and we would lay in the shade with our latest book. I really do love being their mom.

English- Who is winning the war?

Yesterday, I went to the store to buy something for my sprinklers. When the guy asked if I needed help I said, "Yes, can you show me where I can find a plastic thing to cap my Sprinkles."

The man pointed me in the right direction and my friend who was with me started laughing really hard.

I asked her what she was laughing at and she said, "You want a cap for your Sprinkles?" I was so embarrassed I had used my girl's word for Sprinklers. Everyone is constantly correcting the funny things I say in English. The scary thing is that it is subconscious and I don't even notice. I am supposed to be teaching them English but instead they are messing up mine.

Magical April Moments

At one of the seminars I went to recently about adopted kids, they said to remember the magical moments and focus on those instead of all the negative. For my own sake I wanted to blog about my magical April moments.

During a spring snow storm, we went out at 11:00 at night and pulled the kids behind the car on tubes. The night was quiet and no one was out but us, we had a blast and laughed and laughed. The kids couldn't believe what we were doing and hugged me a hundred times and told me I was the best mom ever. I felt like a teenager again.

This was my first race of the year. The kids had to get up at 5:45 a.m. on a Saturday to come, but they begged and pleaded to come. I loved crossing the finish line with my kids on the side lines cheering me on. When I was done they all came running up for a sweaty hug.

For our one year anniversary with the girls, we went to Park City for a few days. They had a karaoke night at the hotel we were staying. My girls were fearless and took endless turns singing for the group. Jeff had to leave and couldn't watch, he was too embarrassed. I held it together for quite a few songs, but when Sara started in on Tinkle Tinkle Little Star, I had to run to the bathroom and let out the laugh that had been building. I laughed in the hall till tears came.

While in Park City I got a bad sunburn on my legs. The girls said in the Ukraine they put sour cream on sunburns. Hmm. Well, I had some and it hurt so I tried it. My friends who were with us laughed and thought I was crazy, but the girls were pleased I had followed their advice. After a few hours my leg was, well.. disgusting. We all thought it was pretty hilarious.

We went to my nieces dance competition, where she performed a solo. The girls were impressed. After the performance, they said they were going to practice their dances and make their own costumes then come to the competition and perform. They perform frequently at home with homemade costumes.

All of you who have seen their dances know why I found their suggestion hysterical. I explained they would have to join a dance team and get a teacher if they wanted to do that. They insisted that I could show them. By this point I was laughing out loud. I told them I was sorry but that is one thing I definitely could not teach them. It is funny, they think I know everything.